Tag:

Fear

Mirror, Mirror on the Wall!

by TerryLema

I was getting ready for the day when I looked in the mirror as I was combing my hair. I started to laugh and told God, “LORD, I am making your job a lot easier! ’The very hairs on [my] head are all numbered’ and they are getting fewer and fewer for You to count!”  [Matthew 10:30 NLT]

Of course, that Scripture comes in the middle of a passage on fear—how we are not to fear men and what they can do to us but are instead to fear God.

“Don’t be afraid of those who want to kill your body; they cannot touch your soul. Fear only God, who can destroy both soul and body in hell. What is the price of two sparrows—one copper coin? But not a single sparrow can fall to the ground without your Father knowing it. And the very hairs on your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are more valuable to God than a whole flock of sparrows.” [Matthew 10:28-31 NLT]

There is much to fear in this life, especially if we are facing those things without the reassurance of God’s love and care. All around us are things that promote fear … politics, the media, violent protests, viruses, bullying, threats of recession, terrorists … the list is endless.

BUT GOD … one of the most glorious two-word phrases in life … BUT GOD(!) is so protective of us that He even numbers the very hairs on our head. If our LORD is aware of the very smallest thing, will He not also be aware of those big things that seek to generate fear? And this LORD who loves us and is “aware,” also has the power to keep us in His care. Amen

Isaiah 41:10: “Don’t be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand.” [NLT]

 

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Bible Verse of the Year (YouVersion)

by TerryLema

“The Bible verse shared, bookmarked, and highlighted most often by the global YouVersion Community during 2023 is…”

That was the grand announcement in my email the other morning. I found the verse quite telling.  It is …

“Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” [Isaiah 41:10]

This verse as the Bible verse of the year boldly informs that fear is a constant struggle for many people. There is little in our politics or culture to alleviate that fear. In fact, much of our politics and culture adds to it!

Right around the time this verse ended up in my email, the FBI announced that we are in greater danger for terrorist attacks than we have been in decades. There was also another shooting on a campus. The war between Israel and Hamas escalated once again. Our region had several murders, including a domestic violence incident which killed a pregnant woman and her 10-month-old son.

I could go on, because there were many more such incidents, on the local, state, national and global stage. Add to that the nasty rhetoric of our national politicians, and anxiety and fear are exploding.

People are looking for relief from fear, but too many are looking in all the wrong places.

Relief from fear is only found in one place, in our God. He will strengthen us. He will help us. He will uphold us with His Righteous Right Hand. Amen!

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Be Courageous

by TerryLema

There was another mass shooting. This time in Lewiston, Maine. Eighteen people died at the hands of one crazed man. Sadness. Disbelief. Confusion. Abound.

The one voice that keeps repeating in my mind was that of a young girl who was injured. She was shot in the leg. She sat next to her mother as they were interviewed about their experience. After expressing her amazement that being shot was part of her life experience now, she asked a profound question, “Why do people do these things?”

Indeed, why do people do these things?

Evil is in this world. We can give it all kinds of modern definitions, but ultimately it comes down to the fact that evil is a real presence among us.

Jesus said, “You will have suffering [tribulation] in this world.” But then He did not end there. He reminded His listeners to “Be courageous!” because He had “conquered the world.” [John 16:33 HCSB]

As children of God, we do not have to be afraid. Cautious, yes. Wise, yes. But afraid, No.  Jesus has given those who have surrendered their lives to Him the ability to be courageous. He has provided the strength to face the world’s evils knowing that even if they kill this body, they cannot divert our eternal destiny from that day when we will be with Him in glory.

Thank you, LORD, for the courage to face this world’s evil. Thank you, LORD, that you have conquered the world. Amen.

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Do Not Fear What They Fear

by TerryLema

I was reading in 1 Peter today … I’ve read 1 Peter a lot, yet still I notice phrases that I really took no notice of before.  Today it was, “And who will harm you if you are deeply committed to what is good? But even if you should suffer for righteousness, you are blessed. Do not fear what they fear or be disturbed [frightened], but honor the Messiah as Lord in your hearts.”  [1 Peter 3:13-15 HCSB]

Do not fear what they fear; do not be frightened.  That’s the part I don’t remember taking note of when I’ve read this letter before.

Fear is common to all of us. The doctors says, “I’ve got some bad news.” Or there is a knock on our door in the middle of the night. Our children get in trouble.  We lose our job.  Fear can hit us from any angle, at any time.

We know the world is a fearful place.  As long as man has free will to choose evil, the world will not be a safe place.  It wasn’t safe in Peter’s Day; it is certainly not safe in ours.  Yet Peter admonishes us to not fear what the world fears.

These verses come in the main section of the letter, which speaks of God’s grace in suffering. They also introduce the important spiritual principle that the fear of the Lord conquers every other fear.

As Christians, we are faced with crises just like everyone else.  And we can be tempted to give in to our fears and make the wrong decisions. But if we trust Christ as Lord in our hearts, we need never fear men or circumstances. Our enemies might HURT us, but they cannot HARM us. Only we can harm ourselves if we fail to trust God.

 

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Nuggets

by TerryLema

I am a firm believer that we can walk away from every Sunday service with a nugget of truth that ministers to our soul and spirit. We might glean it from something in the message, or a phrase in a song. We might gather it from something someone says to us or hear the whisper of God when we are praying.

We can walk away with that nugget if we go in expecting to find it. That happened last Sunday. The message centered around fear. And right in the middle of it, I heard the pastor say … “Both fear and faith can move mountains. Fear moves the mountain into our path, faith moves it away.”

Suddenly I had a mental image of some of the mountains that have blocked my path over the years. I don’t think I spent much time wondering how the mountain got there, I was more concerned about how to get the mountain out of there!

Remember the event with the father and son following Jesus’ transfiguration on the mountain? The disciples had been unable to do anything to relieve the boy’s distress. After Jesus set the boy free, the disciples questioned Him about their inability. His response told them why.

“’Because of your little faith,’ He told them. ‘For I assure you: If you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will tell this mountain, “Move from here to there,” and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.’” [Matthew 17:20 HCSB]

I always focused on working on getting that “mustard seed” faith to move my mountains. I never considered what part of my thinking (fear usually) put that mountain there in the first place. But I sure will consider my thinking going forward thanks to Pastor Jerrad last Sunday.

That was my nugget, and it was a good one.

 

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Right Hands

by TerryLema

There is war in the Sudan. Two generals are fighting to rule the country and destroying much of it and killing many of its people as they do so. There has been fear regarding the safety of Americans residing there. Last Sunday morning it was announced that American Embassy staff and their families had been successfully evacuated. While that is praiseworthy, there are still many Americans caught in Sudan struggling to leave the country. I cannot imagine how fearful they must be.

Lately, people have been shot and injured or killed who simply went to wrong houses, wrong cars, wrong driveways accidentally. I watched as a car with a pizza delivery sign drove by me the other day and wondered if that person was fearful that they might encounter the same thing.

Reasons to fear are all around us. They flood our media. They speak through people in authority. They can even be in our homes, our schools, our stores, our parking lots, our businesses. The enemy of our soul means for them to grab our attention and hold it, keeping us frozen in place, unable to think or move. Fear can dominate our lives and overpower our thinking.

That is why it is so important to know our God. I have heard it said that there are 365 “Do Not Fear’s” in the Scriptures, one for each day of the year. I was reading in Isaiah 41 and came across two.

“Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be afraid, for I am your God. I will strengthen you; I will help you; I will hold on to you with My righteous right hand…. For I, YAHWEH, your God, hold your right hand and say to you: Do not fear, I will help you.” [Isaiah 41:10,13 HCSB]

Did you notice what I did? The first thing I noticed is that God “will hold on to you with [His] Righteous right hand.” The second thing I noticed is our God will “hold [our] right hand.”

Right hand to right hand means we are face-to-face. “Let us run with endurance the race that lies before us, keeping our eyes on Jesus, the source and perfecter of our faith.” [Hebrews 1b-2a HCSB]

“Eyes on Jesus” is the antidote to fear!

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Fear!

by TerryLema

I have been listening to the news coming out of Russia and Putin’s threats of a nuclear war if he does not get what he wants. It was clearly a fear-tactic, common among megalomaniacs and dictators. It has been used down through history because it clearly works. Fear of what might happen often cripples people into compliance.

The news reminded me of Luke 21 when Jesus’ disciples asked Him “What will be the sign when these things are about to take place?” [21:7 HCSB]

Jesus responded, “Watch out that you are not deceived.” [vs 8 HCSB]

Then He began to outline the signs that would take place at the end of the age. He told them many would pretend to be Him, there would be wars and rebellions. He talked of earthquakes, famines, and plagues. Then He told them about persecutions and captivity that would come.

Finally, He spoke of the signs in the heavenlies in verses 25-28. I found it interesting that Jesus does not mention fear until that part of the prophecy. “People will faint from fear and expectation of the things that are coming on the world, because the celestial powers will be shaken.” [vs 26]

It is when God enters the picture that a fear unlike any other will enter mankind. “Then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.” [vs 27]

And if you are reading along with me this morning in Luke 21, you must love how the next verse begins … “But …”

“But when these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is near!”

Today: Amen, LORD, thank you, no matter what the world looks like, our redemption is assured!

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Ain’t Going to Give Up – Is He!

by TerryLema

Recently Pastor Laura at The Way talked about victory over the enemy. She brought her message from the life of David. As she spoke, she mentioned the Spirit of Fear. At that moment, I realized that a Spirit of Fear had entered my life last September when I was so sick.  I realized also that since I had failed to recognize what was going on, I also failed to deal with it appropriately.

I have been around death a lot in my life, beginning at the age of seven when I attended the service for my favorite aunt. The next year it was my grandfather. At the age of 16 after getting my driver’s license I became the transport for my neighbor to his medical appointments as he died from lung cancer.

As a Hospice Chaplain I confronted dying and death almost every day. That experience actually made me less afraid. Plus, faith in Christ Jesus whom I know is the “Resurrection and the Life,” brought great comfort. [John 11]

But when I got sick last September, something changed in me. Little bouts of fear would appear and rather than take authority over them, I would try to reason with them. Not a smart move. It only caused them to increase in frequency and momentum.

Until that moment in church a few Sundays ago when Pastor Laura’s message brought the problem into the light. I took authority over that Spirit of Fear in Jesus’ Name and haven’t been bugged since.

You do know, however, that the enemy of our soul never gives up! This morning when I opened my email inbox, I found a link to a local newspaper. I usually get the major and local news each morning from them – but today was different. Today they sent me a link to the “Daily Obituaries!”

I laughed so hard. The enemy never gives up. But my Savior and LORD never does either and the victory is in His Hands! “But thanks be to God, who [always] gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ!” [1 Corinthians 15:57 HCSB]

 

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Fear

by TerryLema

As I waited to leave for a class the other night, I turned on the national news. As the host came on the air, tense music began to play. The tenor of his voice was one of warning as he outlined the various news events the broadcast would cover. I have listened to this national news many times in the past, but something clicked in my spirit that night.

Fear. Everything from the music to the tone of the host’s voice to the events chosen to be covered was designed (perhaps not intentionally) to create fear in the listener.

Fear. It is the atmosphere of much of our society. We fear this v-and-fear pandemic. We fear the crashing of our economy. We fear the loss of the very foundations of democracy. We fear radicalism, hatred, injustice, and so much that is displayed across our government, media, and social lives.

As a child of God, however, fear is part of our past, not our present. When Christ redeemed us, when grace appeared for us, the fear that lived in us was replaced with something far stronger. We received the Spirit of adoption into the family of God.

“For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption, by whom we cry out, ‘Abba, Father!’  The Spirit Himself testifies together with our spirit that we are God’s children.” [Romans 8:15-16 HCSB]

Now God is personal, He is our “Abba, Father.” He is not our enemy, but our Father. As His Spirit lives in us, He Himself testifies to us constantly that we are God’s children. GOD’S CHILDREN!

If there is anything that should bring us to our knees, it is not the fear this world promotes, it is the wondrous truth that “I am a child of God!” We cannot say that enough. We cannot meditate on that enough. We cannot live that enough. It is the only thing that will drive fear from us!

I am a child of God!

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Be Afraid, Be Very Afraid!

by TerryLema

“Be afraid, be very afraid!” is a quotation usually attributed to the 1986 horror film The Fly, written by the Canadian David Cronenberg, and starring Jeff Goldblum and Geena Davis.

Hollywood and many book authors like to make us afraid. It is all supposed to be in fun. But the enemy of our soul is not aiming for fun when he sends fear our way.

His fear is designed to make us unstable, unreliable, and uncertain about everything. It is designed to hold our thoughts captive. It is designed to make us forget God’s promises and replace them with doubt and worry and anxiety.  His fear seeks to immobilize us, and its goal is to steal and destroy our spiritual growth and kill our spiritual life.

Paul tells us that the fear the enemy sends our way is more than emotion.  It is a spirit.  “For God has not given us a spirit of fearfulness, but one of power, love, and sound judgment.” [2 Timothy 1:7 HCSB]

One of the primary ways to overcome the “spirit of fear” sent by the enemy is to replace it with the “Fear of the LORD.”

While that sounds strange—to replace fear with Fear—it is effective and true. The key to overcoming fear is total and complete trust in God. It is faith and trust that come from knowing Him and knowing that He is Good. The “Fear of the LORD” is a reverential awe of God and a respect for His power and glory, as well as His wrath and anger. It grows in us as we grow in knowing Him.

It is a total acknowledgement of all that God is and all that He does – and CAN do!  It is bowing down to Him in respect and reverence knowing that He is all-powerful and nothing man (or the devil) can do to us can overpower our God.

Psalm 56:11: “In God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me”

Isaiah 41:10: “Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be afraid, for I am your God. I will strengthen you; I will help you; I will hold on to you with My righteous right hand.”

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